Nonlinear Analysis Summary:

Yielding/Plasticity: If you do not define a stress-strain curve for a material, it will remain linear elastic, and it cannot yield

·       ANSYS Classic material library does not include any nonlinear stress-strain behavior

·       ANSYS Workbench material library does include some nonlinear stress-strain data

Contact: If you do not define contact surfaces, parts are not monitored for changing contact or sliding conditions

·       include ALL surfaces which may change in contact (close, open, or slide)

·       ANSYS Classic default behavior: Augmented Lagrange

·       ANSYS Workbench default behavior: Penalty function

Large deformation behavior should be activated if (ANY of these conditions occur):

·       the model has contact elements

·       if deflection s are "large" wrt to the size of the model

·       if translations and rotations are "large"

·       large strains occur (> 0.05)

·       model stiffness can change due to stress (stress stiffening effect)

Gradual Loading:

·       Substeps are defined (initial, min, max)

·       Automatic stepping, ON

Output Controls:

·       May need ALL results sets while debugging a model

·       Reduce data storage for final analyses.

Solution Failures:

·       Failure on substep 1: can come from errors in dimensions, material data, initial contact conditions (lack of adequate support)

·       Failures after substep 1: can come from element distortion or failure to reach static equilibrium.  May need better mesh or perhaps more, smaller substeps

In the General Postprocesssor, look at Results Summary to see what is available

Read Results > By Pick > to choose a specific results set to examine.

LOOK at the last good solution (if available) to see if obvious problems are visible.

LOOK at the failed solution (usually available) also to observe problems.

(failed solution is identified as SUBSTEP 999999)

File Management:

 Save files:      'jobname'.db      and    'jobname'.rst         [results file (rst) mat be large]

You need to know: the directory location where the files are stored and the name of each file ('jobname')

To use these files:

Open ANSYS: